From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishshyshy1 /ʃaɪ/ ●●○ adjective (comparative shyer, superlative shyest) 1 SHYnervous and embarrassed about meeting and speaking to other people, especially people you do not know He was a quiet shy man.shy with She was very shy with strangers. a shy smile As a teenager, I was painfully shy (=extremely shy).shy to do something He was too shy to come and sit by me in class.go all shy British English (=to suddenly become very shy) Oh, have you gone all shy, Jenny?► see thesaurus at confident2 → somebody is not shy about (doing) something3 WILLING#unwilling to do something or get involved in somethingbe shy about/of (doing) something Employees are urged not to be shy about reporting incidents of sexual harassment.4 → be shy (of something)5 used to say that someone does not like something and therefore tries to avoid it Although publicity-shy, he recently agreed to be interviewed. → camera-shy, work-shy6 FRIGHTENEDshy animals get frightened easily and are unwilling to come near people SYN timid Deer are shy creatures. —shyly adverb He grinned shyly. —shyness noun [uncountable] I overcame my shyness. → fight shy of (doing) something at fight1(22), → once bitten, twice shy at bite1(14)THESAURUSbashful shy and not willing to say very muchself-conscious worried and embarrassed about what you look like or what other people think of youtimid not brave or confidentreserved not liking to express your emotions or talk about your problemsintroverted thinking a lot about your own interests, problems etc, and not liking to be with other peoplewithdrawn quiet and not wanting to talk to other people, especially because you are unhappyantisocial not liking to meet people and talk to themretiring formal not wanting to be with other people
Examples from the Corpus
shy• Perhaps his anxiety leads him to be excessively shy and almost apologise for his existence.• Most are Type A personalities, very outgoing, although a few are very shy and express themselves through their cars.• I think it will succeed although it will take ages, for he is fearfully shy, and I am likewise affected.• David was always rather quiet and shy at school.• Carl is a very quiet, shy boy.• You may be shy, but good oral communications are a key business skill.• He was painfully shy in public, but completely different at home with his family.• We follow the railroad tracks a half-mile east of downtown, just shy of the train tunnel.• A shy smile hinted that he did not entirely regret it.• Carrie looked up at him and gave him a shy smile.• Look, she's gone all shy - stop teasing her.• I was too shy to ask her out on a date.• He was too shy to come sit by me in class.• Because little Danny spent all his time with his mother, he was rather shy with men.painfully shy• A lonely genius, painfully shy.• I am considered to be fairly outgoing but as a teenager I was painfully shy.• The result was that I was painfully shy.• He was painfully shy as a teenager.• From being a painfully shy, diffident recluse, he suddenly metamorphosed into a garrulous and sometimes painfully overbearing extrovert.• I retreated into my shell, being painfully shy in the first place.• Riddlesberger is particularly engaging as a painfully shy techno-nerd.be shy about/of (doing) something• You made the supreme sacrifice of your life for your work last night, so don't be shy about admitting it.• The company is shy of discussing its product in any detail before its formal unveiling in the next few weeks.• We must also avoid branch meetings seem like a gathering of old chums into which an outsider might be shy of intruding.• I was shy about meeting the man who had come to visit.• I was shy about meeting well-known writers people whose names were printed black on white.• People who are shy of speaking out in front of all the other governors may feel more confident in a sub-committee.• Avoid quiches, pasties and meat pies, but don't be shy of the ubiquitous baked potato.• I was shy of undressing in front of adults.shy creatures• This simple test showed that all mankind was one; but it was difficult to do with exotic or shy creatures.• These shy creatures may sometimes be seen and have been known to stray on to the road, startling passing motorists.• In the main they are shy creatures, though their speed, strength and agility demand a healthy respect.shyshy2 verb (shied, shying, shies) [intransitive] DSHBACK/BACKWARDSif a horse shies, it makes a sudden movement away from something because it is frightened The horse shied, throwing Darrel from his saddle. → shy away from something→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
shy• There are some horses who are really just avoiding working by shying at everything.• Being asked to go on a committee may be something we tend to shy away from at first.• Agencies without a clear-cut wartime role will shy away from conflicts.• This does not mean that we shall shy away from tackling difficult subjects that may cause offence.• Yet science has consistently shied away from the task.• These memories are still quite fresh, and Clevelanders do not shy away from them.shyshy3 → coconut shyOrigin shy1 Old English sceoh 